Middle School Band

Madeleine's Holiday Concert was postponed because of foggy, icy weather. So, mid-January we headed over to the middle school for some Christmas tunes. Madeleine loves playing the flute and is always willing to practice without even being reminded. She is first chair flute and has so far gone unchallenged as the other flutes are so confident in her abilities, they are afraid to try! We are proud of her and love to hear her make beautiful music.

There is only one Sale

This is the tag line for the Harrods After-Christmas sale. And, I think all of England took it literally. A group of 6 of us ladies left bright and early Monday morning after Boxing Day and got downtown shortly after the store opened at 9. It was sheer madness. There was a queue of 45 minutes just to enter the "perfumery"--the room where they had all the marked-down gift sets of perfume and cologne. We fought our way through the crowds in the other rooms, scoring some marked down makeup sets. And then, we went down to the purses. When we were in Paris this summer, I fell in love with this Longchamp purse. I decided I didn't "need" it, and didn't buy it. As soon as we sat down on the train to go home, I was sad and reaized, "I should have bought that purse." I've been thinking about it for the 5 months since. I was browsing, and across the room, saw THE PURSE. It was the only one, and I pounced. It was there, it was on sale, and it is now mine. I was very happy.

The fact that we broke for lunch and went to the Kensington Creperie just added to the perfection of the day!

Christmas 2010

We continued our tradition of getting our Christmas tree at Elveden on Saturday after the Ward Christmas party. Elveden is this great little village with a couple fun shops and a yummy restaurant. Each year, they sell trees with dressed-up Newfoundland dogs that will pull your tree to your car on a wagon. Even though Kent refuses to spring for their services, the kids love looking at the dogs.

This year, we continued a Meldrum tradition of making Gingerbread Houses. It was really fun to decorate them with our friends, the Rays. We had 3 families over for Christmas Day, which made for much craziness (22 people for dinner) and much fun. We got lots of family gifts this year--games and PS3 Move system. We are so grateful for our friends and family near and far that love and support us.

Pantomime and Nutcracker

Kent had the first week of the kids' two-week vacation off work. We wasted no time getting busy! On Monday, we met a couple other families in Norwich for this years' Pantomime--Jack and the Beanstalk. This year was not as riotously funny as last, but still a great time. And, of course, we continued the tradition by eating at Wagamama's. Yum!

On Tuesday, we went to see Chronicles of Narnia Voyage of the Dawn Treader in 3D in Bury St. Edmunds. We love those movies!

On Wednesday, we headed back to London to go the National Opera Ballet's Production of The Nutcracker. It was a traditional interpretation, which was good. I was glad the kids got to see it and can now have pictures in their heads when they hear the music each Christmas season. I don't think we'll make it a yearly tradition. Upon leaving, I asked Kent what he thought. His response: "That was great. Let's never do it again!"

Birthdays!

Ethan turned 14 on December 7 and Madeleine turned 12 on the 8th! I cannot believe they continue to get older and time passes so quickly. Ethan is turning into a fine young man; we are so proud of the choices he is making. He has grown so much physically, mentally, and spiritually. We are really grateful he is part of our family.

Madeleine is glad to be in the Young Women's program at church, although she still rejects most things "teenager." I am really thankful for the protections that gives her, but I am also looking forward to her showing some interested in makeup and clothes, so I can take her shopping.

They both had friend parties (back-to-back nights!) and had lots of fun.

Spain

Over Thanksgiving, we wanted to go somewhere fun and warm. We were half right! Southern Spain was not nearly as balmy as I had hoped, but we did have loads of fun. We flew down on Wednesday, just taking the kids out of the last couple hours of school--which unfortunately corresponded to their parties, making the children slightly crabby.

On Thursday, we headed to Granada to the Alhambra, one of the most fabulous sights in Spain. It was a Moorish Palace and was remarkably well-preserved and amazingly decorated.

On Friday we went up to Ronda, which is a "white-hill" town in the Analucian hills. It was a painful drive up; after Colin got carsick, we ended up stopping about every 10 minutes to let everyone get out of the car, walk around, and let the queasiness subside before we went on. We drove up that mountain on switchback curves for over an hour! Crazy. Even worse was the way down, when we drove through a cloud with zero visibility for about 20 minutes. But, the bull ring and the gorge was worth it. The kids had a blast pretending to be both bull and bull fighter, and despite some rain, we had some beautiful views of the gorge and bridge.

Saturday, it poured buckets. I mean, I have never seen so much rain. In Bronwyn's words: "We came to Spain to get away from the rain, and it never even rains this much in England." And, I mean, we were nowhere near the plain, where that rain is supposed to mainly stay, so I don't know what Henry Higgins is talking about! So, we spent that day hiding out in the "Fun Zone" at the local mall and renting a movie to watch back at our condo, where we had dinner and played games.

Sunday, was beautiful. Clear and fine, so we got to go to Gibraltar before we caught out plane back home. It was like coming home to England: fish and chip shops, tea houses, and paying in pounds. We took a private taxi ride who drove us all over the "rock." We went to St. Michael's cave and got lots of time with the monkeys. It was a great day!

I was really glad to turn in our stick-shift 5+2 car (where we either had room for kids or luggage, not both) and get back to our Odyssey!

London Day Out

Since we had seen the Parthenon on our cruise through Greece, we figured we'd better go see all the marbles that should have in the museums there but aren't because they are in the British Museum. Lord Elgin, who was the British Ambassador to Greece when it was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire in the late 1800s got permission from the Turks to pry off the statues and the friezes and bring them back to England. They have been prominently displayed in the British Museum ever since. Even though the Greeks are politely and firmly requesting the back and built a special museum to house them, the British are not giving in. It was really a unique experience to hear the Greek side of the argument and then come home and hear the British side of the "Lord Elgin Marbles" controversy.

After a yummy Italian lunch at Zizzi in Covent Garden, we stopped by Leicester Square where they were preparing for the Harry Potter #7 part 1 premiere. The stars were not expected for several hours, but the crowds (and dementers) were there in force! It was cool to see the red carpet all laid out and the giant screens getting ready to show the arrivals.

We then made our way to the theater where we saw "Stomp." It was really fun. It is amazing how much "music" you can make with household objects and your bodies! The kids had fun participating: clapping and snapping on cue.

After swinging back through Leicester Square--still no stars but pouring rain--we headed back to the tube.

Halloween 2010

It was a motley crew, but we had a blast going trick or treating on base with several families. It seemed like a snowball--we started with 3 families and just kept gathering friends as we walked. Ethan was out with his buddies (as box-man, I think), Madeleine was Dumbledore, Bronwyn was Hermione, and Colin was Harry Potter himself. Madeleine used that costume for Character Day at school. She won a prize for her costume and letter. Here is the letter she wrote introducing herself as Dumbledore for her "visit" to school:

My dear esteemed colleague Madeleine,

Greetings! It has been all too long since we last got together. Of course, we have both been very busy, you with your schoolwork, and I with my duties at Hogwarts. When you last wrote to me of your new school, I was curious, having never heard of Lakenheath Middle School. In fact, I’m writing to you now asking about visiting the very school you are now enrolled in. After all, being headmaster of Hogwarts, I naturally want to know all about the academic standards of other schools. Of course, at your school, you will be learning things like mathematics, history, grammar, and other Muggle life skills. Oh, and please, for the sake of not alarming your fellow students, and, of course, your teachers, be sure to tell them of my coming. Tell them that Professor Albus Dumbledore, of whom they can read about in my good friend J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, is coming to access your school on November 18, 2010. I do sincerely hope that my visit will cause you no inconvenience. If so, please contact me immediately so I can change plans. In your last letter you told about Black and Gold days. It is because of this information that I have decided to come during Seminar, as I will then be able to visit without interrupting a class. Meet me at the library at 2:15 P.M. or whenever convenient. However, if you can’t be there, again, please contact me, as it will save a lot of waiting.

Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts

Madrid with the Girls

Just 4 days after arriving home from the cruise, I was off again--Barely enough time to do the mountain of laundry, sort, and repack. This was an official OCSC trip organized by Sarah Hall, aka, The Best Tour Guide Ever. I helped her a bit by arranging our hotel accommodations at the fabulous Hostal Acapulco right downtown and by booking airport transport and a few other things. My working title is Svengali Sherpa to End All Sherpas. (Sarah is a bit dramatic!) Madrid is beautiful--fabulous architecture and sights. The weather was perfect and the company was fabulous.

Venice

We had one day at sea before returning to Venice. We docked early, so we got to spend the whole day exploring Venice. We took a water taxi downt to Piazza San Marco, where we went into the basilica and saw the amazing Byzantine mosaics. Then we went into the Doge's Palace and across the bridge of sighs. We walked around a bit, found a lovely restaurant for some delicious pizza. Walked some more and ate yummy gelato. Crossed the Rialto Bridge, bought some souvenirs, went to the Friari church to see Donatello's John the Baptist, and walked back to catch our ride to the airport. It was an exhausting day, made even longer by a delayed flight. Poor Colin!

Katakolon

We made everybody get off the boat today to go to Ancient Olympia. We had a different guide today, and her name was--brace yourself--PUPI. We all got a giggle out of this.

Anyway, it was amazing to see the ruins of where they had the games almost 3000 years ago. And to see the place where they still light the torch before each Olympiad today.

Mykonos

Mykonos was what I envisioned Greece to be. White-washed buildings set in green hills above blue sea. It was beautiful. We took a boat and a tour out to Delos, which is the birthplace of Apollo and Artemis. Our guide, Adonis (yes, for real), was very engaging and knowledgeable. It was a great day.

Athens

Our big day was Athens. We had booked a tour with a private companyand hired a large van to seat both families, a driver, and a tour guide to take us around the city. It was amazing to see the Acropolis, the Olympic Stadium, Lybettos Hill, etc. in real life. Our driver,Dmitri, and our guide, Pepe were fabulous. We learned a lot; it was interesting to hear the Greek side of the "Elgin Marbles" debate, especially while living in Britain and hearing the British argument for keeping them. The kids also learned that Greek food is delicious--they loved our lunch stop with Chicken Souvlaki, gyros style!We went to the changing of the guard in front of the unknown soldier memorial.They have a big ritual with some unique outfits! There was an older man there with food for the millions of pigeons--it was another highlight for the kids to "feed the birds."We also got to go the new Olympic Stadium on our way to drive the Lybettos Hill with the amazing view of the whole of Athens. Here is the whole crew--Carpenters and Meldrums enjoying our beautiful day in Athens. Should be memories to last a lifetime.

Corfu

Next up was the island of Corfu. The little kids elected to stay on the boat, which was a good call as it was freezing and rainy and there really wasn't that much to see.We went to the Achilleon Palace, a 19th century dwelling of the Austrian Princess who married into Greek royalty. After the Palace, we went down to Corfu City, where we wandered the crazy narrow and disjointed paths and did a little shopping and exploring. Ethan braved the elements with us and was rewarded with what was quite possibly the most delicious gyro EVER.

First stop--Croatia

Our first port of call was Split, Croatia. We took a bus tour and a walking tour of Diocletian's Palace. The Palace was prettyamazing--really more like a walled village--a motley mix of churches, living spaces, and shops. A highlight was hearing this a cappella group echoing through one of the ruined entrance halls.They werereally good, and it was interesting to hear some native Croatian music. The Dalmatian Coast is stunningly beautiful, but the rest of the town was pretty standard Eastern European. It was a lovely day, though, so we went back to the boat to swim and hang out.

Greek Island Cruise

Our big family trip this fall was on a cruise. We left from Venice on RoyalCaribbeanSplendor of the Seas. We arrived mid-morning in Venice, intending to spend the day exploring, but by the time we got to the boat to drop our luggage, lunch at the Windjammer Cafe was calling and we ended up exploring the boat and hanging out until departure time. We went with our friends, the Carpenters. Their kids and ours get along very well, and it was great to have playmates for just about everyone. (Ethan got gypped and had to hang with the grown ups!)

The kids enjoyed just about everything on the boat.

Kent and I had a balcony room and the kids were in a room just across the hall. The teen program wasn't that great, except for he last day, when they had some fun activities at sea. But, the children's program was a hit with everyone else and we all loved the food.

Colin had more chicken tenders than you can count, but the others were quite adventurous, trying lots of the yummy delicacies and special foods they serve.

Ethan tackled the Rock Wall, making it to the top despite the stiff wind and "gentle" rocking of the boat!

Ramstein Bazaar

Embarrasingly enough, I only have one picture of this adventure, and it is of me and Katrina sharing a plate of some of the most delicious pasta ever. A group of lovely ladies from Lakenheath Officer and Civilian Spouses Club rented a van and trailer to go down to the European Bazaar they have every year at Ramstein AFB. We flew into Frankfurt and were met by our driver who took us to fabulous shops where we could buy things, he would load them for us, and drive them back to England. Sign me up for next year again, please!

Normandy Beaches

The next day, we spent on the beaches themselves. It was really amazing to see what was left. There were the German batteries, some with guns and camoflage netting still intact. There were all the craters left from the Allied bombings before the troops came ashore. We spent some time at the American Cemetary at Omaha, which was very moving. Each of our children wandered until they found a marker which spoke to them in some way. They then thanked that soldier by name for his sacrifice. I hope it helped them understand what had happened there at least a little. We then walked down to the beach itself and splashed and marveled at what had been done. Ethan timed himself running from the waterline up to the treeline--it took him about 1 min 20 seconds, and that was without full combat gear and an 80 pound pack. It is a miracle that the mission succeeded. Kent, Ethan, and I had all read books about D-Day, which helped us understand the 18-month to 2 year prep time of Operation Overlord. Being there and standing on that soil made it very real.

On our final day, we stopped in Bayeux to view the famous tapestry telling the story of William the Conqueror. It is a really stunning achievement. So huge, so detailed, and so clear in the story telling. We took the audio guide which walked us through each panel, detailing the story and pointing out all the handiwork. Madeleine had studied this is Host Nation last year, so it was especially cool for her to see it up close (well, behind glass but close!).

We then headed back across the tunnel and home. It was a great trip.

Labor Day in Normandy

We decided to take the kids out of school for a day before things really got going and drive to Normandy for a long weekend. We drove and took the chunnel train. It was an easy drive. We stopped in Rouen on our first afternoon for a beautiful view of the cathedral. We then continued on to our KeyCamp right near the beaches. The camp itself was fairly nice with lots of amenities (like pools with slides, bounce houses and playgrounds), but the trailer was TINY. I mean, Kent was getting claustrophobic. Still, it was a bargain and the location couldn't be beat.

The next day, we headed to Caen, which was the first larger city liberted after D-Day to the memorial museum there. It was incredibly detailed and well-done, not only about the D-Day landings themselves, but also about pre-war and post-war history to help put the conflict in a larger context. We spent several hours there. The kids were very patient.

We then drove over to Mont St Michel. I had seen pictures of this in every French book I ever had from 7th grade on, so it was a big thrill to be there in person and get to climb up the rock and into the monastery. We loved it.

First Day of School

Even though we never seem ready, the first day arrived. Colin is across the street at Lakenheath Elementary in 2nd Grade with Mrs. LeVay. Bronwyn has a 15 minute walk to Liberty Intermediate in a 4/5 combo with Mrs. Siftar. Madeleine started at Feltwell Base in Lakenheath Middle School in Victoria House 6th grade. She and Ethan catch the bus just up the street. Ethan is in 8th grade in Central House. So far, so good!